Million Grant From the European Commission

PR Newswire - USA; Jan 25, 2002

Novirio Pharmaceuticals announced today the award of Euro 1.9 million from

the European Commission to fund a research project entitled

"Flavitherapeutics." The consortium, comprised of Novirio Pharmaceuticals

and several academic research groups from France, Italy and Germany, is

focused on the development of novel drug candidates for the treatment of

flaviviruses, including hepatitis C, dengue fever and West Nile viruses.

The project is funded, in large part, through the European Union Fifth

Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development ("FWP"). The

objective of FWP is to stimulate transnational collaboration in research

between industry and public entities and establish networks of excellence

and promote technological innovation in Europe.

"We and our project collaborators are focusing this project on three

flaviviruses due to the significant disease burden in Europe and around the

world," said Dr. Gilles Gosselin, Coordinator of the Project and head of

Novirio-CNRS-University of Montpellier II Cooperative Laboratory in

Montpellier, France. "Due to the unique approach we are pursuing, the

probability of this project successfully discovering drug candidates in the

near term is high." Currently there is no preventive treatment for HCV, DENV

or WNV infection, and currently approved therapies, which exist only against

HCV, are limited.

An estimated 8.8 million people are infected with Hepatitis C virus (HCV) in

Europe and an estimated 170 million people are reported to be infected

worldwide. Chronic infection with HCV can lead to liver inflammation,

cirrhosis, cancer and death. Design and development of pharmaceutical

compounds that are synergistic with other approved and investigational HCV

therapeutics is essential for the evolution of treatment standards including

more effective combination therapy.

Dengue Virus (DENV) is the causative agent of Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever

(DHF). According to the World Health Organization (WHO), two-fifths of the

world population are now at risk for infection with this virus. An estimated

500,000 cases of DHF require hospitalization each year with a mortality rate

of 5% in children.

West Nile Virus (WNV), a flavivirus previously known to exist only in

intertropical regions, has emerged in recent years in temperate areas of

Europe and North America, presenting a threat to public health. The most

serious manifestation of WNV infection is fatal encephalitis (inflammation

of the brain) in humans. Outbreaks in New York City (US) and in Southern

France were reported in 1999 and 2000, respectively.

The goal of the flavivirus project is to discover new drug candidates that

interfere specifically with the replication of flaviviruses without

interrupting normal human cellular function. Investigation of the activity

of newly synthesized lead compounds that inhibit the replication of various

flaviviruses has already started.

"Novirio's close collaborations with CNRS, University of Montpellier II, and

University of Cagliari since 1999 have produced two drug candidates

currently in clinical studies for the treatment of hepatitis B infection.

Funding from the grant the EU has awarded to this consortium will help

broaden the scope of our collaborative research and accelerate the

development of new drug candidates for the treatment of hepatitis C and

other flaviviruses," commented Martin L. Bryant, M.D., Ph.D., Executive Vice

President, R&D, for Novirio. The consortium is composed of:

Novirio-CNRS-University of Montpellier II, France: Gilles Gosselin

University of Osnabruck, Germany: Frank Seela University of Cagliari, Italy:

Paolo La Colla CNR, Pavia, Italy: Silvio Spadari ESIL-CNRS-AFMB Marseille,

France: Bruno Canard Novirio Pharmaceuticals, Cambridge, USA: Martin Bryant

Novirio Pharmaceuticals Limited, together with its affiliates, is a

biopharmaceutical company focusing on the discovery, development and

commercialization of innovative treatments for life-threatening viral

diseases. The Company's drug discovery operations are conducted in

Montpellier, France, Cagliari, Italy and Cambridge, MA, and its clinical

development, business development and marketing operations are currently

conducted from offices maintained in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The Company's

principal disease targets are hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus

(HCV) and HIV/AIDS. Novirio's most advanced drug candidate against HBV, LdT,

is currently in Phase IIb clinical trials in Asia, North America and Europe.

Contact France and Italy: Contact USA: Novirio SARL Novirio Pharmaceuticals

Inc. +33 (0)4 99 52 22 52 +1 (617) 250-3116 Jean-Marc Allaire David Franklin

Sr Director, European Operations VP, Commercial Operations

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http://tbutton.prnewswire.com/prn/11690X31393278 Novirio Pharmaceuticals

Inc.

Contact: Jean-Marc Allaire, Sr Director, European Operations of Novirio

SARL, +33-(0)-4-99-52-22-52, or David Franklin, VP, Commercial Operations of

Novirio Pharmaceuticals Inc., +1-617-250-3116